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Saturday, 10 December 2016

Running again!

It's been four months since I twisted my knee cap. The last run I went on was the 17th of August! Seems like forever ago. And these shoes! Also bought forever ago. I usually do not go to the gym and so I have never invested in fancy in door shoes. I just have these old classics, that have been in my life since age...like...13? But for the last couple of weeks I've been going to the gym for a session with my physical therapist, cycling, planking, squatting...and now finally today, RUNNING!

And so my first run in four months was on these old babies.

Well, I say run, what I mean is 1 minute jogs. Everything I'm doing is based, not only on rebuilding muscles, but also regaining muscle memory. The first time walking without a cast. The first time walking up and down the stairs without lifting my hip awkwardly. Every time I try something I have not done in a while, I realise my body had forgotten how to do it. And it was the same with running.

Running after this injury felt like the bones in my leg were bone to bone, without any cushioning. Like, bones smashing into each other. Not nice. Not painful, but not nice. According to the therapist, this is normal, as your leg muscles have forgotten that they have to cushion the blow. This is why, when you start running again after a long stop, you need to build back up from scratch. Literally, run a minute, walk a minute, run a minute, walk a minute...and so on.

But even with the awkwardness, being there, on the treadmill, in my old shoes, running, running was amazing. It felt like a hurdle I had to jump over, and I made it. Progress is actually happening. In October 2017 the 42 marathon of Amsterdam will take place. And I want to be there. And today I could feel the start of a new chance of making it across the finish line after 42KM. We will see if it will happen, but I'm sure going to try. And although there is a very, very long way to go, the first hurdle -running without pain- has been taken!